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Find unknown trackers - Android Help

Find unknown trackers

You can identify, find, and remove trackers that have been placed near you or in your belongings without your knowledge or consent with the help of unknown tracker alerts.

Important: This feature is only available for Android 6 and up devices.

What are trackers?

A tracker, also called a tag, is a small bluetooth device you can attach to items like keys or a backpack to help you find them when they get lost. Some headphones and earbuds also have tracking capabilities so they can be found if they're lost.

In some cases, these devices may be misused to track people without their consent.

What does an unknown tracker alert mean?

An unknown tracker alert is sent when someone else’s tracker device is separated from them and if your Android phone detects the tracker is traveling with you and out of Bluetooth range from the owner. The notification alerts you to the tracker and tells you how to find it and what to do next.

Tips:

Compatible Trackers

Unknown trackers alerts currently work with Find My Device network compatible tags, headphones, and Apple AirTags.

What to do if you get an unknown tracker alert

Important: If you turn off Bluetooth or location services, or turn on Airplane Mode, your phone won’t prevent the owner of the tracker or device from finding the location of the tracker. To disable the tracker, follow the instructions provided by the manufacturer.

  1. On your device, tap the tracker notification to open a map.
  2. Find where the tracker has been detected traveling with you.
  3. Tap Play sound, which causes the tracker to make a sound.
  4. To locate the tracker, follow the sound.
  5. If you find the tracker, tap Next steps.
  6. After you find the tracker you may:
You’ve got an unknown tracker alert

If you get a notification on your Android phone or tablet, a tracker that’s not yours could be moving with you.

It’s possible that the tracker is attached or in something you’re borrowing, such as keys or a backpack.

To learn more about the tracker, such as the type of device and name of the manufacturer, tap the notification.

When you tap the notification, it’ll show you a map where the tracker was detected moving with you.

Play sound to find an unknown tracker

If you get an alert, to help you locate the tracker you can have it play a sound by tapping Play sound.

If you still can’t find the device, make the tracker play a sound again by tapping Play sound.

Tip: You won’t notify the owner of the tracker if you’ve played the sound.

If you can’t play or hear a sound

If you’re unable to play a sound or can’t hear the sound, try to move around and tap Play sound. It’s possible that the tracker is no longer in range or the device ID has changed.

If you can't play a sound but believe the tracker is near you, look through your belongings. Search yourself and your surroundings for anywhere the device may be hidden. This could be in places you don’t commonly look like in a pocket, your bag, or your car.

You can connect your Android device to the unknown tracker through Bluetooth to guide you to its location:

  1. On your device, tap the tracker notification to open a map.
  2. Tap Next steps Find nearby.

If you can't find the device and feel your safety is at risk, go to a safe public location and contact law enforcement or a trusted contact.

You can take screenshots of the unknown tracker alert and the map of the tracker locations for later reference.

What to do if you find a tracker

To get the list of actions you can take, tap Next steps.

There may be different instructions for different trackers including saving information to help report and disable the device.

Get information about the tracker

Once you find the tracker, you may want to save its information.

  1. You may want to take a screenshot of the unknown tracker alert and map of the tracker locations.
  2. For Airtags, to learn more information about the tracker, bring the tracker near the back side of your phone.
  3. For Find My Device network compatible trackers, to learn more about the tracker, follow the on-screen instructions.
Disable the tracker

Important:

If you can’t find the tracker

If you can’t find the device, it may still be near you or on your belongings.

Find previous tracker alerts

If you want to see alerts that you’ve previously received:

  1. On your device, tap Settings.
  2. Tap Safety & Emergency Unknown tracker alerts.
  3. In the middle of the screen, tap the tracker alerts button.

Tip: Alerts are deleted after 48 hours.

Check for trackers near youRun a manual scan

You can check for trackers that are separated from their owners and currently near you at any time.

  1. On your device, tap Settings.
  2. Tap Safety & Emergency Unknown tracker alerts Scan now.
Which trackers show up in manual scan

You can detect trackers that are currently near you and separated from their owner’s device with manual scan. It’s possible that the trackers found in a manual scan are simply misplaced or temporarily separated from their owner’s device.

If you’ve turned on Unknown tracker alerts, you’ll get a notification automatically if the system determines that an unknown tracker is moving with you.

Didn’t get an alert for a tracker in a manual scan

Trackers that appear in a manual scan are currently near you, but may not have been traveling with you.

If you have alerts turned on, you’ll be notified automatically if the system determines that an unknown tracker is moving with you.

How your phone got the update

To keep your Android phone safe, it regularly gets updates in the background. During an update, Play Services adds the unknown tracker alert system and you automatically get notifications about an unknown tracker.

If you would like to opt out, you can do so any time.

Turn off unknown tracker alerts

Important: If you turn off unknown tracker alerts, previous alerts will be cleared and any information about other unknown trackers will be deleted. This data can’t be recovered.

If your Android device is Android 12 (S) and up:

  1. On your device, tap Settings.
  2. Tap Safety & emergency Unknown tracker alerts.
  3. Turn Allow alerts off.

If your Android device is Android 11 (R) and lower:

  1. On your device, tap Settings.
  2. Tap Google Personal & device safety Unknown tracker alerts.
  3. Turn off alerts.
Your data & privacyWhat data we use

To determine how an unknown tracker has traveled with you, unknown tracker alerts use your location information and timestamps of when your device detected the tracker, and a device ID for the tracker. When you receive an unknown tracker alert, you’ll also find the places that the tracker was detected with you on a map.

This information is processed and temporarily stored in an encrypted format, never leaving your device, to determine if there’s a tracker following you and displaying it to you on a map. It’s not shared with Google or other users.

Android location settings privacy Troubleshoot problems with unknown trackersWhy can’t I ring a tracker after I get an alert?

You may not be able to ring the tracker if:

What does it mean if the tracker’s device ID has changed?

Each Bluetooth tracker has a random ID associated with it that changes periodically. If the tracker isn’t near its owner, it may change less frequently, such as once per day.

When the tracker changes its random ID, it's no longer identified as the same tracker, and your Android device will display it as a new tracker in future scans or alerts.

Why didn’t I get the alert sooner?

Unknown tracker alerts consider multiple factors when sending an alert. To improve alert accuracy, you need to physically move with the tracker over time before receiving an alert.

Why didn’t I receive more than one alert?

The system is currently built so you only will receive one alert, per tracker, each day. If you’re still concerned that a tracker is with you, run a

manual scan to find nearby trackers

.

Why didn’t my manual scan detect nearby trackers?

To show trackers in the manual scan feature, they must be separated from their owners physically. Running multiple manual scans may improve the accuracy of the nearby trackers detected.

Additional support resources

If you’re concerned about your safety, these resources may help:

Related resources

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